Billy Gillispie Officially Introduced to Texas Tech Fanbase [AUDIO]

You can listen to Billy Gillispie’s opening remarks and the question-and-answer session with the media right here on KFYO.com

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This morning, Billy Clyde Gillispie was introduced to the Texas Tech fanbase in a press conference at the United Spirit Arena. Gillispie is the 14th head coach in Texas Tech Red Raider Basketball history and he has signed a five-year contract with the university.

Gillispie’s previous coaching experience includes seven years as a Division I head coach at UTEP, Texas A&M and Kentucky and a stint as an assistant at South Plains College. He has a Division I coaching record of 140-84 (.622).

During the question-and-answer portion of today’s press conference, Gillespie was asked for his thoughts about getting a ‘second chance’ after being out of college basketball for two seasons, “It means everything to me to get another chance, but only if it was going to be the right spot. This is definitely the right spot. Again, the tradition, the passion, the community.

I’ve been around here when I coached at South Plains College just down the road. Just the State of Texas and this conference, there are so many positive things here, so many great facilities here. You can recruit really good players here. The returning players that we have I’m excited about. I’m excited about the incoming players and we’ll add to that as we go.

As you can tell, I do shoot from the hip. But I get excited when I talk about having an opportunity to lead this basketball program. I’m not one of those guys that has a five-year plan. I have a one-day plan. And when tomorrow’s over, we’ll start another one-day plan, and that’s what we’ll try to do.”

Gillispie also addressed what he will do to bring back the winning ways to the Red Raiders, “But the most important thing in any kind of turnaround is you can have the greatest facilities. You can have so many things going your way, the best administration, a great coach, all these great fans. You can have all these things that are present here. But the most important thing is players.

We have to get the right players and continue to develop the guys that are going to be returning. We have to continue to make sure that we recruit the right guys and get them here on campus. The most important thing in winning games is players.

Now having good players alone will not do it. Everyone has a responsibility. I definitely have my responsibility. The fans have their responsibilities as well. But the way that I – the only way I know how to do it is to put your feet to the pavement. Go out there and work and give your best effort every day and enlist others to do the same thing. That’s the way we’ve always been able to do it, and it’s proven pretty successful.”

Student attendance drastically dropped during the end of Pat Knight’s tenure with Texas Tech and Coach Gillispie explained how he will reach out to the students, “You get that to happen only by letting them know you. And there is a great student population here at Texas Tech University. There’s been great student populations at other places I’ve been. I promise you this, they’re going to know me.

I’m going to be out on campus at the baseball games, at the football games. They’re going to get to know me. I’m going to spend a great deal of time with them. They’re going to feel like, hey, we know this guy. We’re going to pull for this guy and help his teams win.

Fans are one of the most important things in developing. When you have a home-court advantage, next year when you play conference games there’s going to be a five-minute period in each game that’s going to determine the outcome of the game. The home-court advantage gives you a great opportunity to go your way instead of losing if you don’t have the home-court advantage.”

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